Medical devices are frequently used to treat the anatomy of patients. Such devices can be permanently or semi-permanently implanted in the anatomy to provide treatment to the patient. Frequently, these devices, including stents, grafts, stent-grafts, filters, valves, occluders, markers, mapping devices, therapeutic agent delivery devices, prostheses, pumps, bandages, and other endoluminal and implantable devices, are inserted into the body at an insertion point and delivered to a treatment site.
Devices such as grafts and stent-grafts are used in a variety of places in the human body to repair, support, and/or replace anatomical lumens, such as blood vessels, respiratory ducts, gastrointestinal ducts, and the like. Such devices can, for example, provide lumens for fluid flow. In such configurations, flexible and durable devices are needed.
In various applications, such as particular vascular applications, it is desirable to utilize a graft or artificial lumen having a tapered length portion. Tapered length portion and/or grafts may also be useful in connecting discreet grafts or tubes of differing diameters. As such, there is an ongoing need to provide tapered implantable devices, such as grafts and/or stent-grafts, which have improved flexibility and/or rapid recovery properties. Such devices may improve characteristics of the blood flow of a patient and reduce thrombosis.